NYC jobless-discrimination bill veto override due

The nation’s most far-reaching effort to stop employers from shunning out-of-work job applicants is expected to become the law in New York City, despite a mayoral veto.

The City Council was set to vote Wednesday to override Mayor Michael Bloomberg‘s veto of the unemployment discrimination measure.

New Jersey, Oregon and Washington, D.C., have passed laws banning help-wanted ads that rule out unemployed job-seekers. New York City’s measure goes further by letting rejected applicants sue employers for damages.

Advocates for the unemployed say such hiring practices are unfair, particularly after years of high unemployment and layoffs.

Businesses and Bloomberg say hiring decisions are too complicated to legislate. They say the measure will lead to dubious lawsuits.

The override vote has been anticipated since Bloomberg vetoed the measure last month.